Whom Do You Say That I Am?

The Test for Entering In

When Yahushua was with His disciples one day, He asked His disciples a question. He asked them,
"Whom do men say that I am?" His disciples answered, and said "Some say that you are
John the Baptist; some say that you are Elijah; and others say Jeremiah or one of the other
prophets."

Yahushua then replied, "But whom do you say that I am?"

Beloved, this last question Yahushua asked His disciples is perhaps the most profound utterance
made by Yahushua during His short ministry on earth. In this question, Yahushua invites His true
disciples of that day, and those of today, to seek Him for the answer.

Yahushua is inviting us to search the Scriptures, to find the answer to this all-important
question. The answer to this one question, and its implications, are profound, and of utmost
importance. This question must be prayerfully and carefully considered by every sincere follower of
Yahushua.

Why is this so important? It is because Father will use this question, and how we answer this
question, to determine who will enter in to the City of the King, and who will not be allowed to
enter in! Not everyone that strolls up to the gate will be allowed to enter. So everyone must first
be tested, to determine their right to enter the City!

In this series, we look at multiple items of Scripture showing issues that prove, or disprove,
whether we really know who Yahushua is. These issues will ultimately qualify, or disqualify,
someone from entering the City.

"Whom Do You Say That I Am?" — We Are Being Tested!

For those who have been cleansed by His precious Blood, and have received His Grace for the
forgiveness of sin, finding the answer to this question will become the most important event in our
daily walk with Him.

When we were first introduced to Yahushua, we understood perhaps in a general sense, that He is the
Son of Yahuweh, and the Messiah of Yahuweh. Peter, when asked the question,
"Whom Do You Say That I Am?" responded with, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the
living God" (Matthew 16:16). It was the Holy Spirit, and not man's teaching, that
revealed Yahushua's true identity to Peter. In the same way, the Holy Spirit revealed
Yahushua's true identity to us, perhaps at the beginning of our conversion experience.

Knowing Yahushua's true identity is certainly the first step to becoming a Biblical Believer.
But as we shall see, Scripture tells us that our actions reveal what we actually believe about the
identity of Yahushua. Indeed, we are even now being tested daily by our heavenly Father, so that He
may see exactly where we stand on this all-important question: "Whom do you say that I
am?"

Many today will proclaim, "Oh, He knows our hearts!" Well, have we not read about the
Israelites (Deut 8:2), whom Yahuweh led in the Wilderness? We are told that Yahuweh tested them by
observing their actions, so that He might know what was in their hearts (Deut 8:2). Yahuweh
tested Hezekiah in the same way (2Chronicles 32:30-31), "that He might know all that what was
in his heart."

Because He is righteous in all things, Yahuweh uses our actions — not our thoughts — to
test His people, and to prove them! There are multitudes of believing Gentiles today who have
experienced a Born-Again experience, yet continue on in their former Gentile ways, and their
actions and lifestyle remain unchanged. It is these who, because of their unchanged actions and
lifestyle, will hear, "I know you not!"

So we see this question is a very important one for us today!

There is far more to the answer to this question asked by Yahushua than is first apparent. We must
diligently seek Yahuweh for further understanding, in order to acquire Peter's same revelation
of Yahushua, that Yahushua is indeed the Messiah of Yahuweh, and the Son of
Yahuweh.

As Born-Again Believers and former Gentiles, most of us today have little understanding of the Old
Testament writings, and so are not yet aware that our actions and lifestyles reveal who we Believe
Yahushua really is. Our actions actually form part of Yahuweh's testing, and reveal whether or
not we know Yahushua's true identity.

To many Believers today, Yahushua is not Messiah, but only a saviour, one who rescues us when we
encounter great trouble or difficulty. As a result of not knowing Yahushua's true identity, our
'Gentile' lifestyles remain unchanged, and we will fail the test.

To the trained Hebrew Scribe of Yahushua's day, for one to claim to be the Son of David, or the
Son of Yahuweh, or to claim to be the Messiah of Yahuweh, had a great and far-reaching meaning,
with very great implications. This same realisation has great implications for us today!

In this writing we will explore further, going beyond our present understanding of Yahushua as
being the Son of Yahuweh and the Messiah of Yahuweh. We shall seek in the Scriptures,
to give us further understanding of the true identity of Yahushua. Our purpose for this writing is
that we might grow in grace, and [also grow] in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour,
Yahushua Messiah. For we will see that what we do reveals to Father what we really believe — and
reveals to us, and to Father, whether or not we know who He really is!

House on a Rock

We begin with a first look at one of the parables that Yahushua taught. Yahushua's parables
appear at first to be individual parables, somewhat unrelated and un-connected. However, they are
all related, and are part of one, great panorama, each parable giving a piece of the puzzle, as it
were, of the overall portrait of the Kingdom of Yahuweh.

We will begin by looking at the parable, and also the context in which it was spoken. However, we
must first take note of one thing. Derek Prince said on many occasions, "If you see a
therefore, find out what it is there for! This we will do as we look at the first
Scripture passage to consider:

Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him
unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: (Matthew 7:24)

The first thing we will note is the word therefore. What do we want to do? We want to find
out what it's there for! In order to do this, we must back up a few verses, and note
that Yahushua is discussing two things. Let us observe:

Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of
heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that
day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and
in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you:
depart from me, ye that work iniquity. (Matthew 7:21-23)

In the above passage there are two main points. The first point is that the one seeking to
enter claimed that Yahushua was his Master, his Lord, and in His name had done many wonderful
works. His good works indicated that he was a Believer, yet Yahushua called him a worker of
iniquity. He claimed to be a servant of Yahushua, while still in disobedience
to Yahushua. Thus in Yahushua's eyes the true identity of the one seeking to enter His
kingdom was in question!

We should note here, that the remnant of Yahushua's true Disciples are identified by several
characteristics, one of which is their obedience to the will of Yahuweh. In this passage we
catch a glimpse of a great spiritual truth: What one believes about Yahushua's true
identity, and even one's own identity, is based not upon what one says, but upon what one
does.

The second point is that there are those to whom Yahushua will say, "I never knew
you." In the Hebrew way of thinking, knowing someone is a very intimate activity. It
takes two to tango, and truly knowing someone is not at all a one-sided affair.

If we do not do His will, Yahushua will not know us, nor will we be permitted to
truly come to know Him, or His true identity — nor will we be allowed to know the
Father. Instead we will be kept, as it were, at arm's length. Thus it is the issue of doing
the will of the Father that reveals whether or not we actually know Him. We must further
conclude, that in order to do His will, we must know His will. Lord Yahushua, let us
become seekers of You, that we might find, and become doers of, Your will!

In this same passage above, there also appears to be a connection between knowing Yahuweh
and working of iniquity. Now the word iniquity in the above verse is the Greek word
'anomia,' Strong's number <458> and <459>, which means lawlessness, and
transgression of the law, otherwise known as sin, as the Apostle John tells us (1John
3:4).

We also see from several other Scripture references that there is a direct connection between
knowing and loving Yahuweh, and departing from sin [Transgression of the Law]. So we now
understand that the parable Yahushua is about to speak is related to whether or not Yahushua truly
knows the one seeking to enter His kingdom. We shall now proceed to the parable:

Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will
liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the
floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon
a rock. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be
likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the
floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of
it. (Matthew 7:24-27)

To aid us in seeking the major items within the parable, we will look simultaneously at the same
parable from the Book of Luke:

And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say? Whosoever cometh
to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I will shew you to whom he is like: He is
like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock:
and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for
it was founded upon a rock. But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that
without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat
vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great. (Luke 6:46-49)

Beloved, please notice that in the two accounts of the above parable most of the details, of both
the wise and foolish builders, and the rain and floods, were the same. Both builders heard
Yahushua's sayings, they both built a house. Likewise the rain, floods, and wind came to
both houses.

The one thing that is different is this. The wise man heard and did the sayings of Yahushua,
which is shown as laying a foundation upon the rock. The foolish man built his house,
without a foundation, upon the sand, which is shown here as hearing but not doing
Yahushua's sayings. The respective outcomes are obvious. We may conclude from this parable that
it is not only the hearing of them that is important, but the doing of Yahushua's sayings,
which will become a sure foundation for our spiritual life.

Becoming a DO-er of His Word

We have seen that the heart of the matter of the parable is being a "DO-er" of these
sayings of Yahushua, not a hearer only. We have previously seen that the word therefore in the
parable relates to this the idea of Yahushua knowing us, and of our truly knowing Yahushua and the
Father. We conclude that if we desire to truly know Him, we must find out what these sayings of
Yahushua really are, so that we might become a DO-er of them.

As in the above parable, the wise builder first had to dig deep in order to lay the proper
foundation. Likewise we must dig deep into the precious Word of Yahuweh in order to lay the
proper foundation, of being a "DO-er" of the sayings of Yahushua. However, in
order to do the sayings of Yahushua, we must know what they are. And to know what Yahushua's
sayings are, we must find the true identity of Yahushua. We must therefore dig deeply, in
order to determine which are Yahushua's sayings, and to find out what the sayings of Yahushua
actually consist of.

We might recall that the phrase "Lord, Lord" in the parable above is also spoken by the
foolish virgins of Matthew 25, suggesting those of Luke 6:46-49 are prophetically one and the
same with those of Matthew 25, in whom they portray. We see the word 'then' in
Matthew 25:1 is the Greek word 'tote,' which means "at that time," telling
us that the entire passage in Matthew 25 is in the same context as the previous chapter —
the time of the coming of Yahushua, and of the bride being made ready, and being prepared for the
Bridegroom.

Thus we can see the passages in Luke 6:46-49 are likewise showing the foundation of doing of the
things which I say to the preparation of the wise virgins who had oil, and so they were allowed to
enter in with the Bridegroom.

However, there are many issues remaining that will help us to spot hidden enemies that intend to
prevent us from entering in. These will be dealt with in this series, but we must begin at the
foundation. We must determine not only who Yahushua is, but what are His sayings, which have been
revealed to us 'from the beginning.'

Seven
Biblical Guidelines for Studying the Bible: Using Scripture to Interpret the Scriptures New! - What is the
source of our current understanding of the Bible? The pure Truths of Scripture are of highest
importance — how we understand the Scriptures will affect our eternal condition! To avoid being
deceived by man-made doctrines, we must not rely on Preachers, Teachers, Bible notes or commentaries.
Instead we must study and understand the Bible for ourselves — not looking through the lenses
of tradition or man-made Bible study methods — but relying only on what the Bible actually
says about how to study and understand the Scriptures! Here are 7 Biblical Guidelines that show us
the way!

Messiah In The
Wilderness - Who is Yahushua? Do we know Him? Do we love Him? Yahushua is now testing us, to
see whether we know Him and love Him, by observing which Commandments we keep

Messiah-In-You - Only
Messiah-living-within-us can bring us in to the Promised Land

Oil for the Light - Scripture
reveals what the Oil for the Lamps is, and what it is NOT, for our warning today

WWYD? What Would Yahushua
Do? - The Scriptures show Yahushua as our example in all things; the simplest test of what we
should do in every aspect of life, to determine Truth, and to enter in to the Promised Land

The Mystery of His Will - The
mystery of His Will; The mystery of His Delight: What are the signs that we truly know
Yahushua?

The New Covenant Passover -
Participation in Messiah's Passover is a key preparation item for the First-Born [the
FirstFruits-Bride] of Yahuweh's people

True Grace - by David
M Hargis - A Biblically accurate overview of New Covenant Grace as used in the context of the
majority of the apostle Paul's writings

Grace-Grace - As seen in Zechariah 4,
Yahuweh's New Testament Grace is two-fold; both aspects His Grace are required to walk in
Righteousness

The
Torah Hidden in the New Testament - The Commandments of Yahuweh's eternal Law [Torah] are
hidden in plain sight throughout the New Testament, but our partly-man-made Doctrines have blinded
us from seeing them.

The Two Witnesses of
Devarim - By Brick Parrish - An overview of the offer of Betrothal and the eternal Marriage
Agreement between Yahweh and His people

The Blood of the
Lamb - By Derek Prince - God's righteousness is by faith, without having to observe the law
— thus depriving Satan of his chief weapon against us, which is guilt